How tag became a professional sport

Christian Devaux and Damien Devaux founded World Chase Tag after being inspired by their own backyard games of tag. From there, it grew from a hobby into a sport with an athletic talent pool — parkour athletes — that had long been ignored. Now there are terms, strategies, and even a media infrastructure surrounding the classic playground game.

Strategies for World Chase Tag draw from the parkour tradition but also from influences as varied as ball sports and gymnastics. It’s a game that’s quickly developing a vocabulary, from “idling” to “herding,” as well as unique personalities. Recently, World Chase Tag made its American television debut on NBC SN.

But for the Devaux brothers, it all stems from that initial passion for a backyard game that was exciting enough to become a sport watched by millions